In the End
by Cervani
Summary: Just a small oneshot. Not all relationships end in happiness... Sorrow Death AU
1. Chapter 1

I took a small break from my current feature story to write this one shot that I've been kicking around in my head for awhile. This also helped me focus, since the next chapter in my main story will be a big one.

This one shot is a bit sad though (for some reason I've been having sad scenes running around in my head along with some fighting scenes), and it shows another side of a pairing. Not everything in a relationship is happy, and a ninja's life is never certain.

So I hope you enjoy!

* * *

_Konoha_

The wind whipped through the long golden hair of everyone's favorite prankster as he gazed out on the village from the middle of the street he was kneeling on, the traditional robes of the Hokage roiling around him. The normally happy, carefree ninja was gone however, to be replaced by the emotionless face of one who has lost far too much...tears flowing freely down his whiskered cheeks. Dead blue eyes slowly gazed upwards to the sky, taking in the grey clouds that seemed to blanket Konoha. And then he lowered his gaze…

…onto a destroyed Konoha.

Flames licked lazily at various buildings in the northern section of the village, the only section that was actually left standing after the aftermath of the blitzkrieg that had appeared out of the blue.

He should have known it was a bad idea to let Tsunade, along with a force of three hundred ninjas and the majority of the civilian populace, leave the village in an effort to stem the fatalities and bedlam that would most likely occur during the attack as well as trying to get some sort of word to the outside villages.

The attack….

Naruto would have snorted at that description, but he didn't care anymore nor did he have the energy to do so. It wasn't an attack, in fact it was nothing near the word.

It was a massacre.

The waves of attacking shinobi and..._things_… that had come into the village had made sure to that. Oh, they should've known. Ever since the disappearance of Ero-sennin as he went to collect information on Akatsuki, they should've known. Even after they received the cryptic message from Pa, and the news of Jirayias' death at the hands of Pein, they did nothing. They grieved of course, but not much else. The council had seen to that, claiming that it would create a panic if they got ready for a war based on the assumptions of one shinobi, Sannin or not. With his hands tied, the newly inaugurated Rokudaime Hokage could do little except warn his closest friends and family.

But it was still too late…

* * *

_Flashback – Ten hours earlier…_

_The Rookie 9 fidgeted, glancing at each other before looking uncertainly at their Hokage__. They couldn't believe what he had just told them, yet they all knew it would come to this someday. It was just a question of when._

_Akatsuki had allied with Sound and Kumo, and was preparing a massive offensive against Konoha. Gaara had been saved, but he was in a coma…unable to come to their aid. Suna was weakened, and the other elemental countries hadn't dared to try and get into the conflict._

_Not that it would have mattered anyway._

_The invaders numbered in the thousands, augmented by twisted abominations created by Orochimaru. Even his genin had been branded by a weaker version of the Cursed Seal, effectively making his army nothing but twisted monsters. Akatsuki had already implemented their plan, incorporating the demons they captured into themselves. They were now Jinchuuriki, and while they didn't have a handle on the powers of the demons they had captured quite yet the chakra boost they gained just from the sealing made the S-Class criminals all the more dangerous…._

_"So that's the gist of it. We have a day, maybe less, before they attack." Naruto sighed, running a hand through his wild blonde hair. This worried those gathered almost as much as the news they were just given. A solemn Naruto was a very sobering thing to see._

_"I won't lie to you. Against an army like this, our chances of coming out on top are very slim. Without the stupidity of the council, we may have stood some chance. But thanks to their aversion to preparations and __eliciting__ panic, we have no standing forces. Half our forces are on missions even as we speak, and at best maybe half of those will be back by the end of the day."_

_A low murmur went through those gathered. It was worse than the aftermath of the Chuunin Exams had been!_

_"I want you all to prepare for battle, and warn your respective clans."_

_Blue eyes glanced from person to person, before softening as they met the pale lavender that had never wavered from him since he had spoken before closing as he lowered his voice._

_"I also want you to know that should things go badly, I want you all to get away from here. "_

_The pain in his voice caused the others to lower their heads. They all knew what he meant. He was their family, and if lost them then there was no point in trying to win a war. They wanted the Kyuubi after all. He allowed himself to grasp onto the wane hope that if they focused on him they would leave the rest of Konoha be._

_Fat chance._

_"You're all dismissed. Get ready."_

_Nodding wordlessly, a dozen poofs of smoke filled the room…leaving behind two lone figures._

_"Naruto-kun…."_

_Smiling softly, Naruto slid from his position on his desk and made his way over towards his wife, taking her hands into his own. Hinata bit her lower lip as she gazed up at her husband, pale lavender eyes practically shining with worry._

_"Hinata, I want you to leave as soon as you get packed up. I…I don't want to lose yo__u __or the baby.__"Hinata__ merely smiled and shook her head, leaning into her husbands' strong embrace. Naruto sighed, sadness engulfing his blue eyes. He had known it was going to be a lost cause trying to get her to leave without him, but he had to try anyway. Her pregnancy had demanded that at the very least. So they stood there, holding each other for what seemed like forever._

_Little did they know things would soon change…_

_Explosions ripped through Konohas' walls not even an hour after the meeting had __broken__ up. The loud cries of beast and shinobi alike filled the air, metal clashing as the defenders tried desperately to hold back the relentless onslaught. _

_It didn't even matter…._

* * *

He had lost them all within the span of two hours. Two hours, and Konoha lay burning, the bodies of its shinobi thrown aside like rag dolls. The remaining civilians left after the exodus Tsunade led a day earlier (against the protests of the council) were not even spared a glance as they were butchered.

Lee…

Tenten…

Neji…

Sakura…

Shino…

Kiba…

Shikamaru…

Ino…

Chouji…

Kakashi…

Iruka…

They had been at the very front of the lines, trying desperately to hold back the seemingly endless horde of beast and man. One by one they succumbed to sheer numbers and the unrelenting power of the Akatsuki Jinchuuriki.

Naruto slowly lowered his gaze from the smoldering remains of the buildings to the unmoving body in his arms. The silky blue hair cascading along his arms, the pale lavender eyes closed.

* * *

_Hinata…_

_She had stuck by him through thick and thin in the ongoing battle, beautiful as the sun she was named after yet as deadly as a cornered cobra. But in the end she had also died, killed by Pein himself in front of Naruto as the other members of Akatsuki held him back in combat…taunting him with his inability to save the most precious thing in his life. They had laughed after the deed, leaping back to watch as he crawled to the still warm body of his wife….his love…his closest friend. Smirking, the nine had watched as he gathered her up in his arms, head bowed, tears flowing freely on the pale face of his most precious person._

Naruto bit his lip as he tenderly caressed the delicate face, blood soon running down his chin from the force of the bit. He had no more tears. No more sadness. He was broken, empty…his world shattered around him.

"Awwww, look at the little fox boy. Sad he lost his girl?" Kisame laughed as he leaned on Samehada, smirking down at the "touching" scene in front of him. Deidara and Sasori joined him in his mirth, smiling almost sweetly down at the motionless pair.

Pein was silent, as was Konan…a flash of pity echoed in both their gazes before it disappeared just as quickly. Itachi also watched silently, all but his eyes hidden by the collar of his cloak as he gazed down at them, before it broke to look at the other two members of Akatsuki.

"Kukuku, oh come now Naruto-kun. Let ME have her. I'm sure I can find something to use her delicious body for after Kumo plucks out her eyes." Orochimaru laughed, his sickening grin matched by Zetsu (though HIS grin was there because of the other meaning of delicious). Itachi's eyes narrowed, before they closed with a mental sigh. '_Naruto-kun, even you do not deserve this…"_

As they bantered and laughed at the motionless couple, they had circled around them…joined by the countless shinobi and monsters that helped in the attack. Their sickening grins, augmented by the Cursed Seal, told all too well what they were thinking. They would have such fun with these two, even after they died.

Naruto ignored them all, dead blue eyes gazing with no emotion down at his love, his light. He was empty for lack of a better word, but that didn't mean he missed the taunts or veiled insinuations tossed so casually at him. Emotionless blue, once the color of the brightest skies, suddenly sharpened into the deadliest of ice. The Shinigami himself would have wet himself if he had seen those eyes at that moment.

'_Kyuubi'_

_**'Hai.'**_

* * *

_Mindscape_

_Naruto walked silently up to the monstrous cage that held the Kyuubi. He and the fox had grown closer over the years, reaching a sort of understanding. A kinship._

_Reaching up, Naruto grabbed __a hold__ of the piece of paper with the word 'Seal' on it, before ripping it off and tossing it aside. The metal gates slowly creaked open, massive ruby eyes opening to gaze outwards. Naruto stood still as the ground shook with each step the Kyuubi took as it slowly walked out of the gate, the giant muzzle slowly leaning down to within a foot of its vessel…the awe inspiring eyes locked on him._

_Naruto stared into the eyes with his own, the dead blue pools gazing calmly into fiery red. No words needed to be said, not between these two._

_Hell itself was about to be unleashed…_

Those assembled continued to snigger and laugh at the motionless couple. Their victory was already assured, their spoils within their grasp. And boy were they going to have some fun taking them.

Key word, "were".

The sniggering stopped suddenly, distracted by the sudden movement in the circle as Naruto tenderly lowered the body of his wife and unborn child. Several members gathered licked their lips as they glanced at the slender body, grinning fiendishly. Yes, much fun was going to be had! They only had to reach out and take it.

………..They never knew what hit them.

Dead blue pools slowly started to fade, ruby red color filling not only the pupils, but the entire eye…the telltale black slit rimmed with blue appearing in the middle.

_**Ba-bump…**_

His lips slowly parted into a rictus grin, canines lengthening followed by his whisker marks as they etched their way almost to his jawbone.

_**Ba-bump…**_

A low chuckle teased past his parted lips, silencing everyone around him. Pein and Konan exchanged looks, not noticing the way Itachi slowly started to back up.

_**BA-BUMP…**_

Naruto slowly raised his head to gaze into the eyes of those around him.

"Ohhhhh shi-…"

_**"**__**RRRRR**__**AAAARRRGGGGGHHHHHHH!"**_

* * *

It was over.

Encompassed by the massive chakra shroud of the Kyuubi, nine tails snapped in the wind behind him as Naruto stared into the fading eyes of Pein.

The blood soaked arm currently shoved through the dying mans chest was of course not helping Pein's cause any, as evidenced by the clawed hand currently holding a twitching mass of red on the outside of his back.

With a sickeningly wet snapping sound, Naruto ripped his arm back out of the corpse in his grasp…the thump of the body hitting the ground echoing in the silence. He staggered back, blood dripping from the corner of his mouth as he smiled before collapsing to his hands and knees…a torrent of blood being coughed up.

Weakly turning his head, he crawled his way towards the unblemished body of his light, his life. The ruby red of his eyes was rapidly fading, blue once more exposing itself as he suddenly fell onto his stomach as a wave of pain ripped through his body. Gritting his teeth, he locked fierce blue eyes forward and inched his way towards her. Fighting the scream that wanted to explode from his throat, he panted as he knelt beside the body of Hinata, pure and untouched even in the massacre. Tenderly gathering her into his arms, tears of blood fell onto the still body as he rocked her quietly…forehead pressed against that of his most precious person before his body took one last shudder.

Whispering voices echoed on the wind, flitting through the burning rubble of Konoha. Darkened skies parted slowly, a beam of sunlight sliding down to encompass the two motionless bodies as snow quietly began to fall…

* * *

Not as good as I wanted it. I might do a second chapter showing the reaction of the survivors and the future of Konoha.

I had originally planned to incorporate the actual fighting into this, but it didn't seem to flow right for me for some reason so I decided to leave it out. If enough people enjoy this (or ask me) I may revise it and add Naruto going full 9 tails Kyuubi on Akatsukis poor asses heh.

But this was just an idea kicked around in my head, hope you enjoyed!

Ja ne!


	2. Update

Evening folks! Sadly this is not an update (to the story anyway, least not yet), but to bring some news that may or may not be good. Depends on your view. After some thinking and alot of real life crap, I've finally come back! Couple things will be changed this time around, hopefully all good.

Twilights Dawn: I personally feel I failed this story. If I can salvage it, I will... or I may just rewrite it without Arashi. I may try to salvage it, but the balance between the two characters is delicate and has to be managed correctly or else it seems I'm favoring one or the other.

In the End: This one has been strangely popular, so I think I should pay it a little more tribute. The ending I had planned for it, but scrapped due to time constraints, will most likely be added. Hopefully this will add more closure to it.

Rule 45: New fic! This will most likely be the top fic I'm working on at the moment (until I figure out what to do with Twilight). I have tons of ideas for this, including one I haven't seen used yet... at least in fics I've read.

There is more info on my profile, so look for updates soon!


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